Apparently...

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...I forgot a couple of things on my 'Crazy Eights' survey. And because my favorite tv show doesn't start for a little bit, I am going to entertain myself by finishing it. Hopefully it entertains you as well, but I understand if it doesn't!

8 Things on my Wishlist:

1)A new laptop (preferably a MacBook).
2)A new dresser.
3)A bookshelf for all my books!
4)A trip to Greece.
5)A boyfriend. :)
6)A sweet apartment close to downtown.
7)A puppy or a kitty.
8)A genie in a lamp so I could have three crazy wonderful wishes.

8 Tidbits About Me:

1)I've broken four bones-all on my left side.
2)My left arm is now about an inch shorter than my right arm.
3)I am freakishly good at remembering people's phone numbers. Example: I could call the Clair E. Gale attendance office if you wanted me to. Why you would, I'm not sure.
4)Lots of people think my sister and I are twins. I think we look nothing alike.
5)When I get nervous, I cross my left index and middle fingers. Never my right hand. And if my hands are occupied, I cross my big and second toe. But only on my left foot.
6)I primarily breathe only through my mouth. I can breathe through my nose, I just hate it. It makes for some very awesome drooling and snoring stories.
7)I hate hate hate it when it's sunny in the winter. It puts me in the worst mood. Give me cloudy days for three months and I really wouldn't care.
8)I HATE the show Unsolved Mysteries and have since I was 4 or 5. To this day, hearing anything resembling the theme music and I will run for cover.

8 Pet Peeves:

1)People who don't change the roll of toilet paper and just leave the cardboard thing there. I always change it. Even at other peoples houses.
2)Hair in the sink. Before I can wash my hands (even at restaurants, gas stations, etc.), I have to clean/wash out the sink.
3)When people spell my name wrong. It's really not that hard!! Pronouncing it, I understand. But sound it out people!
4)People who claim they are open-minded, but then argue with people about everything.
5)People who act one way, but then another way when they're around a different group of people.
6)When people use alcohol as an excuse for the stupid things they do.
7)People who say that BSU is overrated year after year after year.
8)Bad tippers. I'm always the one who has to make up for them. Unless it's truly warranted, of course.

So that took me way too long. I did, however, have a nice discussion with my dad about pet peeves and took a little break to go on a walk with my dog and 2 cats. Yep-my cats go on walks. But not on leashes. That would be weird.

An insightful evening...

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Here are some things I learned at the Cobra Starship concert last night:

1) Whoever invented skinny jeans should have included a warning label that stated:
WARNING: THESE ARE ONLY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE LEGITIMATELY SKINNY! AND BY SKINNY WE MEAN NO BIGGER THAN A SIZE 4.


I mean REALLY??!! Don't get me wrong-there are plenty of people out there that can rock the look and rock it well. However, said people are usually waifish and have legs that resemble chopsticks. And I completely get that all the cool kids are wearing what their favorite band members are wearing. And yes, they are almost always wearing skinny jeans. But may I point out that most band members are approximately 6' tall or have a 28 inch waist? So until you start either a)burning thousands of calories from dancing around 7 stages a week or b)take up consisting on a diet of alcohol, cigarettes, and cocaine and reach the level of skinniness to appropriately pull the look off, PLEASE reach for something a little more flattering next time you go shopping. You can still be punk rock. Why not try one of those ridiculous knit hat/turban things or cut half your hair off? And by the way, I STRONGLY reccommend the dancing thing over the cocaine thing.

2) I'm old. Not only did I have to use earplugs to prevent permanent hearing loss, I didn't even recognize some of the songs played in between bands! I pride myself on being up-to-date with all the latest music. Why do you think my satellite radio is currently tuned to XM Top 20? Yes, I recognized MOST of the music. I sang along with Rhianna and 'Don't Stop the Music' and put 'my hands in the ayer, ayer' with Will.I.Am. But when EVERYONE around me started singing something about making their hips swing, I kind of just stood there and wished I could change the channel. It was the kind of rap that my mom always says gives her a pounding headache that matches the beat. When I almost got a headache that pounded along with the beat, I knew that I had reached a new level of oldness. Good thing I can still hide the earplugs with my hair!

And remember at high school dances when everyone would line dance to 'Cotton-Eyed Joe?' I don't think that happens anymore. I think the new dance of choice is 'Superman That 'Ho' by Soulja Boy (aka 'Crank That'). Good song with good dance moves, but come on? Can it really replace 'Cotton-Eyed Joe?' I think not.

And because I have an inordinate amount of time on my hand, I looked up both dances on YouTube for you. Unfortunately, there was not one good one of 'Cotton-Eyed Joe.' So here's the music video. Same goes for the Soulja Boy song, although this video really isn't that bad.






3) Technology is taking over the world. And it's not necessarily a good thing. While I think it's a really cool thing that you can buy concert tickets just by sending a text message, I really don't see the point in going to a concert if you're going to spend the whole damn time texting someone who isn't there. Two girls in front of us literally didn't put their cell phones down one time during the concert-not even when they were jumping up and down.

I love texting. It makes boring classes and meetings tolerable. It makes communication that much easier. But those people who send thousands of messages every month really just need to get a life. Try some face-to-face conversation. Or even phone-to-phone conversation. Crazy idea, I know.

But yeah, the concert was fun. Great music and plenty of crazy people to keep me entertained. And all that jumping around and singing was a pretty good workout. A couple more concerts like that and maybe I'll be able to rock some skinny jeans!

Time for an update...

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Although I am sure that you all love knowing what my favorite restaurants are and how I spent my day blowing my nose a million times, I thought I would give an actual update. And if you're lucky, you might even get pictures!
I just got back to Boise tonight. Despite some worries that my water pump was going out in my car, I even made it back in time to play some trivia with Brittany and Andrea at The Ram. Amid the trivia craziness, we also decided that The Ram shall be my new place to "pick up some dudes," as Brittany put it. We will see how that goes.


I was in Idaho Falls before, celebrating my late grandmother's life. The memorial service was really beautiful, and the whole family went to dinner later that night. It's sad that it took a funeral to bring everyone together, but it was a great way to remember Grandma Marj and she would have loved it.

Here are some of my favorite pictures of her:
The early years-


And the later years-










And here is a rare treat. I don't think we've ever had a family portrait this good!










I was in IF for a little over a week. And basically, I regressed into my teenage self. I slept a lot (the cold didn't help), watched tv a lot, and ate good food a lot. But all my time was not wasted. I developed quite the crafty side while I was home. I baked banana bread, which was delicious and disappeared in mere hours. I decked the house out in all the Halloween haunted-ness that I could before my mom decided to inform me that she was doing an understated holiday this year and didn't want Dancing Frankenstein out. And so, I was forced to pack him and all his hip-shaking awesomness away. I consoled myself, however, by creating this awesome candy box for my sister.

You can just call me Marthemily Stewart. Needless to say, I was very impressed with my efforts. If you really know me, you will know that I do not have the patience or the talent needed to be considered a "crafter."


Time was also spent at one of my favorite local haunts. Bowlero is where I used to bowl and now it is where I bowl, drink, and play trivia. I don't have all that many friends left who like to hit the town, but the ones that do love to hang out at the 'ero. I have no complaints, however, for the drinks are cheap, the cheesy poufs are delicious, and the company is always entertaining.
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Here is one last picture that I just had to post:
This is my cat Dorothy. Dorothy is a boy, despite his name (entirely the veternarians fault), and this is one of his favorite pasttimes. However, I've never seen him sleep like this for a long as he did on the day I took the picture. Soooo funny! I have pictures of Asia and Fifi and my precious dog Pepper, too, but they aren't on my computer yet.


So, like I said, the purpose of this blog is to serve as an update. I will be in Boise until Wednesday and then back in IF until Sunday for Halloween and Hillary's sisters wedding. Then, I will be in Boise until at least Thanksgiving and maybe even Christmas. Hopefully, I will have found a job by the first of November so I can get the moving thing going. I found an AMAZING place to live, but it seems too good to be true. If it doesn't work out, I plan on moving in with my awesome friend Will. Until then, I will try to think of some worthwhile posts. I don't make any promises though!
Oh yeah...school is coming in January and I even have a few ideas for starting my own business. Life seems to be on track. It's about time.

My Crazy Eights!

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Thanks to Kaelynn, I have something semi-productive to do with my time!

8 Favorite TV Shows:
1.Greek
2.Gilmore Girls
3.Jon & Kate plus 8
4.Seinfeld
5.Frasier (yes, I am aware that only old people like this show.)
6.Real World/Road Rules Challenge (I really hate to admit that I STILL watch that show, and it's really bad this time, but it still sucks me in.)
7.Ace of Cakes
8.E! News

8 Favorite Restaurants:
1.Bardenay
2.Guidos
3.Brick Oven Bistro
4.Papa Kelseys
5.Panda Express
6.The Outback
7.Garcias
8.Burger King/McDonalds (have to have my french fries, cheeseburgers, and chocolate pies!)

8 Things That Happened Yesterday:
1.Went to lunch with the family.
2.Bought some Mucinex for my gross and ridiculous cold.
3.Made a sweet Halloween card for Amanda with Andrew.
4.Took a nap.
5.Finished the 7th Harry Potter book for the 2nd time. (Still made me cry. Such a good book.)
6.Coughed a lot.
7.Blew my nose a lot.
8.Ate 2 things of chocolate pudding and then felt sick.

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To:
1.Carving a pumpkin.
2.Saturday.
3.Halloween
4.Thanksgiving
5.The entire month of December!
6.Getting a new place of residence.
7.Decorating said place of residence.
8.Starting school all over again.

Woo! Wasn't that the best thing you've ever read? I tag miss Hillary. And Kari (when she finally starts a blog!)

Boredom...

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I have officially been unemployed for almost a month now. While I definitely don't hate it, the boredom does get to me. And so I present, for your pleasure, a little journey down memory lane.

1. Did you date someone from your school?
Heck no.

2. What kind of car did you drive?
A red oldsmobile
A white audi quattro (Oh how I miss that car!)
I forget what years I drove what car. All I know is that we shoved a lot of people in little amounts of space!

3. Did you pass your driver's license test on the first try?
Sure did. I suppose Mr. Cardon was a good teacher. Despite constantly chewing on carrots and then spitting them out the window. And we definitely had it a lot easier than they do now!

4. Were you a party animal?
Not compared with the kids today!

5. Were you considered a flirt?
Heck no!

6. Were you in a band, orchestra or choir?
None of the above. Yearbook, however, trumps all of those put together.
I was on my way to having an ulcer at the old age of 17.
It was worth it though.

7. Were you a nerd?
Um, I would say that I am more of a geek. I was back then and I still am today.

8. Were you on any varsity teams?
Have you seen me run? Oh that's right...I can't. So no.
I did letter in yearbook though! Does that count?

9. Did you get suspended or expelled?
All the time. I was a rebel.

10. Can you still sing the fight song?
Dear Old I.F. High, We Are With You,
You're The One We Are All Fighting For...

Are you impressed? I also remember the Gale fight song. Not sure why...

11. Who were your favorite teachers?
I think I learned the most from Mrs. Seydel and Mrs. Marler.
Sestero was my favorite, though. All I learned from her was how to make frappes!

12. Where did you sit during lunch?
In the Wendy's drive-thru, most of the time!
Occaisonally we branched out and went to Arby's.
And sometimes I was forced to go to Toxic Hell.

13. What's your school's full name?
Idaho Falls High School

14. What was your mascot and colors?
Go Tigers!
Orange and black. That fits in just right with my lovely page dedicated to Halloween!

15. Did you go to homecoming?
I was definitely anti-dance in high school. However, senior year, we decided just to go in a big group. I bought my dress the day before, we went to Wendy's for dinner, and it was a damn good time! I wouldn't have had it any other way.

16. If you could go back and do it all again, would you?
Nope. It was fun, but so was/is everything after it.

17. What do you remember most about graduation?
I remember hearing marbles rolling down the floor of the Civic, I remember wondering where my parents were with the camera to capture the once-in-a-lifetime moment (they left and went home. Good thing I had friends who gave me copies : )), I remember Hillary winning the iron and playing in that running/bungee cord thing at the all-night party, and I will always remember driving up Taylor Mountain with everybody to watch the sunrise. Hillary-remember how you didn't want to get out of the car? Soooo lazy!!

18. Where did you go on your Senior Skip Day?
We went and played at Tautphaus Park and then I'm sure we had lunch. Unfortunately, I had to go to school in the afternoon for what else? YEARBOOK!

19. Were you in any clubs?
Honor Society, Rinky Dink, President's Club, French Club, and did I mention that I was in yearbook?

20. Have you gained some weight since then?
Yep. I definitely gained the Freshman 15. And then I lost it. And then I didn't really gain anymore weight until last year. I blame it all on Brittany and Bardenay.

21. Who was your prom date?
Remember how I said I was anti-dance?
Here's another good memory. I don't remember what dance it was, but a bunch of girls went to Ashlee's house and had pizza and watched Stepmom. All I know is that somehow I ended up with pizza sauce on my face. Good times...

22. Are you planning to go to your 10 year reunion?
Yep. But only if Hillary and Kari come with me and we sneak in some alcohol!

23. Did you have a job while in high school?
Old Navy. And that's a whole other topic that I could on for days about!

Gone but not forgotten.

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Marjorie Emily King Poitevin passed away today. I will forever miss her.

I will never forget the power outages at the cabin or the way she closed the curtains.

I will never forget how she cut the crusts off my ham sandwhiches and didn't even care when I just wanted to lick the mayonaise.

I will never forget her size 5 feet.

I will never forget her cat sweatshirts.

I will never forget her playing the piano.

I will never forget how she spoiled us rotten at Christmas and on our birthdays.

I will never forget making fancy hair bows.

I will never forget feeling like a princess when we dressed up in her jewelery.

I will never forget her wonderful life lessons and all her wonderful stories.


She was a sister, a wife, a mom, a friend, and a wonderful grandmother.

She's gone now, but will never be forgotten.

Dinner, drinks, movies, and a scary jacket...

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Much to the dismay of my family, I headed back to BTown aka The COT aka Boise on Friday afternoon for one very specific reason-KARI SPOFFORD BURKETT! Despite the fact that her husband decided to call BSU over-rated without even saying hi first, it was fun to see both of them.

Here's a little something that I know Kari and Scott will love.


One foggy night, a Boise State fan and an Idaho fan were driving the opposite directions on a road near Boise. While crossing a narrow bridge, they hit each other head-on, mangling both cars.
The Idaho fan manages to climb out of his car and survey the damage. He looks at his twisted car and says, "Man, I'm lucky to be alive!"
Likewise, the Bronco fan gets out of his car uninjured, he too feeling fortunate to have survived.
The Idaho fan walks over to the Bronco fan and says, "Hey, man, I think this is a sign that we should put away our petty differences and live as friends instead of being rivals."
The Bronco fan thinks for a moment and says, "You know, you're absolutely right! We should be friends. In fact, I'm going to see if something else survived the wreck."
The Bronco fan then pops open his trunk and removes a full, undamaged bottle of Jack Daniel's. He says to the Vandal fan, "I think this is another sign - we should toast to our newfound friendship." The Vandal fan agrees and grabs the bottle. After sucking down half of the bottle, the Vandal fan hands it back to the Bronco fan and says, "Your turn!"
The Bronco fan calmly twists the cap back on the bottle, throws the rest of the bottle over the bridge into the river and says, "Nah, I think I'll just wait for the cops to show up."


I know Kari will probably beat me up the next time I see her, but it's just sooo funny to see how mad she and any of her fellow Vandal friends get. And no, Boise State is not overrated, and while we may have a weak schedule, take a look at BYU's and where they're ranked and then get back to me.


Ok, enough picking on the Vandals. Hillary and I met Kari for dinner at Bardenay (my favorite!) on Friday night.
Here's a classic Kari pose!
Afterwards, Hillary had to go home and take care of her poor, sick daughter and I dropped Kari off to take care of her poor, drunk husband. Don't worry-he wasn't drunk enough to not make fun of my Boise State car sticker.
Saturday, I was supposed to meet Mike and Brittany to see Mike get his tattoo, but I was late of course. So once he was done, we went and saw Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. Super good movie! You might think it will be predictable, but they throw in some unexpected twists and turns. It will definitely be one that I own. Afterwards, we were bored bored bored and decided to hit up our favorite place. Target, of course! From there, we played some hoops at Shoe Carnival (RANDOM!) and saw some slutty Halloween costumes at Hot Topic. My favorite was watching people watch Mike Jones. He gets the greatest reactions.
And I wonder why? Add this scary jacket to his denim cut-off shorts, mullet hair, and blanket scarf and I would be scared too if I didn't know him.
I ditched the married couple later on and met Kari, Scott, and Jess at Reef. A band from U of I was playing, and although I was surrounded by Vandals, I will admit that I had a good time. The band was actually really good! You can check them out at http://www.myspace.com/soulserene.
The best part was watching people dance. I don't know why, but watching old people dance together and not care about where they are or who might be watching makes me so happy. You can bet that will be me sooner or later!
Sunday was a lazy day until Brittany got off work and then we went to see 'How to Lose Friends and Alienate People.' So funny! Also highly reccommended. And then we played a nice quiet game of Pictureuka! Quiet, my ass! That game is definitely open to interpretation. What exactly do they define as spots or marks? We needed some more specifics, but we made it work. All in all, it was a perfect Boise weekend and one that reminds me why I love living here. Now if I could just find a job...

So sleepy I can't sleep!

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In case anyone can't tell, I seem to be Halloween-obsessed. And since I don't really have a space of my own to decorate, my blog must suffer the consequences. At least it's only for a month!
And no, I did not carve those pumpkins. I merely stole the image. That will change soon.



On a completely unrelated note, LeeAnn Rimes was in concert in Idaho Falls last night (anybody else wonder why a Thursday night?), and it seemed we were headed in the same direction the following day. As I was driving back to Boise, I passed four tour busses all in a line. And where were they from? Tennessee. Using my amazing detective skills, I deduced that it was the star herself. And using my superhuman driving/picture-taking skills, I was able to capture this amazing shot of the caravan.




Please do not be scared-I had full control at all times. Where she was going, I do not know. But I do wonder why she needs four busses. Wasn't she popular like six years ago? And only mildly popular at that?



Here's another random tangent. I am in a state of mourning. My husband, Channing Tatum, gave his heart to another. I know we have spent an inordinate amount of time apart and come from extremely different lives, but I thought we could make it work. Guess I was wrong. Jenna Dewan, you are a lucky girl. You're tires, however, might not be so lucky.

And Renee, it's not like you ever really had a chance with Channing. He was mine from the start! : )